Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy . . .

I just didn't ever want to loose this. So here it is (again, for my Facebook friends):



Happy . . . well I'm not Irish and I'm not big on holidays much . . . so happy laughing at anything that makes you laugh! I hope you enjoyed this little bit of what makes me laugh.

the wagging tail at the end . . .

A dear friend of mine, Teresa Wesley, shared this at church a few weeks ago.
BTW, Teresa is from the South, so make sure you read this with the appropriate accent. ;]

If you know us, you know that the Wesleys love animals. We’ve had lots of them. Right now we have a little Chihuahua and a big, giant Great Dane named Mya. Mya loves everyone. She loves people and she loves animals and loves to lick. Her tail wags so much when she meets new people or animals the back of her body moves and when she sees you her tail wags and wags, but Mya is huge.

I was taking Mya for a walk and had her on a leash. Our neighbor’s little white fluffy dog came running out and Mya was wagging her tail. The little dog took one look at Mya and started screaming and screaming. Mya had never even touched the little dog. Our neighbor came running out and picked up the dog and apologized and the little dog was still screaming in the neighbor’s arms and Mya was wagging her tail.

The still small voice came to me and told me how often I’ve been like that screaming little dog. I just see the big, scary dog and don’t see the wagging tail at the end.
I love to think that the Lord, the great Master Teacher, is still teaching us with parables from every day life. It's fun to put a little perspective and humor into life's craziness too.

Competence is Catching!

Competence is Catching!

from FreeRangeKids by lskenazy

Hi Readers — Here’s a brilliant idea that came in response to the previous couple of posts about how our kids can become more responsible when we back off a little. This mom not only liberated her OWN kids from too much help (however kindly proffered), she liberated a whole classroom! — L.

Dear Free-Range Kids: I always hated when my kids wanted to dress themselves — not because I was dying to do it, but because I would have to defend myself against the “bad mommy” accusation from the other preschool parents. My guys like wearing stripes and plaid or really odd color combinations.

One day I decided I had had enough. I made up “I dressed myself today!” stickers and rewarded my little guys for doing it on their own.  Pretty soon, all the little preschoolers wanted stickers too, so everyone began to dress themselves as well.  I stopped being embarrassed by the independence of my children and began to embrace it.  It can be hard to be the mom who doesn’t do it all for the kids, parents feel peer pressure too! — Sarah

The idea of “I did it myself!” stickers is incredibly powerful. Think of all the situations they could be used in, and how the idea of celebrating kiddie competence could catch on! — L 

Why am I re-posting this here? Other than that I LOVE Lenore Skenazy and her blog (and not just her really cool last name)?? Because I just love this idea that ANY time we want to give advice to ANY one, we should consider first why we're giving it and second whether it's really wanted or needed. Why is that so important? Because if someone figures something out on their own, especially something really difficult, they are empowered from within to face even greater challenges.

Sometimes kindness to someone who is struggling is just sharing the questions and understanding that there are no answers to our struggles at present, no matter what we do or say. Sometimes companionship in just enjoying the life we've been given at present is the best answer.

During our struggles, the Lord has surely blessed us with friends such as these, for which we are truly grateful. God bless you!